Here's Why Disney Hotels Are Doing Away With 'Do Not Disturb' Signs

By: Christopher Feery | January 4, 2018

In a perfect world, hotel guests and staff at the various establishments wouldn’t have to worry all that much about nightmare scenarios that could impact the fate and fortunes of all involved. We do not live in a perfect world, and there have been far too many examples of that to count.

Whether it’s a terroristic incident, the actions of a deranged gunman, or any other seemingly unfathomable situation, there have been far too many instances of hell breaking out and carnage ensuing. In the aftermath of such things, there are always a ton of questions being bandied about.

How was this not caught beforehand? What signs were missed?

Was there some kind of flaw in security that allowed this horrifying incident to move forward unimpeded?

Those are just a handful of the many that come up, and the ensuing investigations always reveal some unpleasant answers. The fact of the matter is that signs do get missed, and those that are hellbent on inflicting as much damage as possible tend to think things through to look for weak spots to ensure they can accomplish their mission.

That’s a pretty chilling thought to process, and the only answer to making some headway on that problem is to become more proactive. That seems to be the thinking behind a new policy at select Disney hotels that’s raising some eyebrows.

As the New York Post shares, the ‘do not disturb’ signs that are inherent to hotel stays are a thing of the past at four hotels at the Walt Disney World resort in Orlando, Florida. Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort, Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa, Disney’s Contemporary Resort and Bay Lake Tower will now offer guests a ‘room occupied’ sign to replace them.

So what’s behind the change? A note in the terms of service provides some clues.

“The hotel and its staff reserve the right to enter your room for any purposes including, but not limited to, performing maintenance and repairs or checking on the safety and security of guests and property,” the note reads.

Back in October, deranged gunman Stephen Paddock opened fire from his hotel room at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas. His actions claimed 59 lives and injured more than 500 others, as Paddock opened fire on the crowd at a concert that was taking place down below.

After the attack was over, it was revealed that paddock had stockpiled quite the arsenal in his hotel room. Details have been scant on the investigation, and there remain a ton of questions about what signs were missed.

So do these new signs mean that the hotel staff can simply barge in when they suspect something is amiss? In a nutshell, the answer is yes, but that doesn’t mean there’s going to be staff coming in and snooping around whenever they feel like it.

It’s simply a proactive measure on the part of Disney at these four hotels, and it’s safe to say that this may be a test run before rolling the policy out on a company-wide basis at its other properties. A number of hotels in Vegas have implemented the same policy in the wake of the Paddock incident, and it’s simply an unfortunate reality of the world we live in.

While it may seem to be pretty off-putting and a nuisance at first glance, that’s a small price to pay if it prevents even one single horrifying incident from taking place.